Considering my leanings over the last few years towards roots and Americana, it’s a curious wonder that I had never caught Lucinda Williams live before last night. Ms. Williams, who is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the start of her recording career, was in the midst of a special, intimate three-night run at the still horribly named Fillmore NY @ Irving Plaza – with each night focusing on material from the different eras of her nine studio albums.

Backed by the fantastic Buick 6, last night Williams drew from arguably her best string of albums – Sweet Old World, Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, and Essence as she moved effortlessly from folk to country to straight up rock mixing longtime fan favorites with rarely played tunes and sharing a number of stories throughout the two-hour-plus show.

Of the stories she shared was the origin around the Car Wheels track Drunken Angel, which was written about the late Texan singer/songwriter Blaze Foley – who Williams described as a professional homeless musician. Let’s head back to 1998 for this live performance of the tune from the fantastic and now long defunct show Sessions At West 54th…

Lucinda closes out her three-night stand tonight, which will find her drawing from her most recent works:  World Without Tears, West and Little Honey. Tickets are still available and can be snagged at the box office without the service charge for just $39 – which is well worth the price.

Jeffrey Greenblatt

Jeff joined the Hidden Track team full-time in 2008 and helps guide the site in his role as Managing Editor and Social Media Coordinator. Each week Jeff pens Pullin' 'Tubes, Tour Dates and Bloggy Goodness in addition to features, video posts and more. Jeff is a graduate of The George Washington University ('98), with a degree in Journalism, and has worked in the media and technology industry for the likes of MTV, VH1, A&E and Joost.

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